Concrete Acid Stain Application

Acid Staining Concrete. The information given here has been gathered from many industry sources and its only meant to be used as a guideline. Please follow your supplier’s instructions when using Concrete Acid Stain.

Acid Stain can be applied to any concrete, polymer overlay and some self leveling products that have a cementitious base, including most interior and exterior floors, counter tops and walls.

Exterior Floors: Concrete should be cured (at least 28 days). Do not acid wash prior to acid staining! Surface contaminants such as curing agents, glue, sealers, waxes, paint, oil, dirt, water repellents and anything that will prevent stain penetration must be removed. There are several steps in cleaning an exterior floor. Always degrease surface, TSP. ( Tri Sodium Phosphate) is a good cleaner, degreaser and easy to use detergent. Rinse well after degreasing and check for water absorption, if there any area where the water beads, treat again. and re do as necessary. After degreasing pressure wash or clean by mechanical means. Once the floor is thoroughly clean and grease free allow to dry and proceed with Acid Stain application. All concrete stains need good floor preparation to work best.

Interior Floors: Concrete should be cured (28 days). Do not acid wash prior to acid staining. Surface contaminants such as curing agents, glue, sealers, waxes, paint, oil, dirt, water repellents and anything that will prevent stain penetration must be removed. Degrease floor and check for water absorption, water beads indicate the presence of a contaminant and floor must be re treated until water is readily absorbed by concrete. When rinsing and cleaning an interior floor use a wet vac to avoid run off and to prevent staining adjacent areas. After degreasing clean floor with by mechanical means if possible e.g. shot blasting, sanding, or with a floor buffer. Rinse one more time to remove dust and dirt, mask all walls with tape and paper and any object you may want to protect,. and proceed with staining.

Saw Cutting: Score lines add a new dimension to acid stain, they provide a natural barrier between colors and enable you to create more eye catching designs. Use a 4” and 7” saw with diamond blades. Mark your lines with chalk and cut to a depth of about 1/4”, being careful not to over cut corners and or to miss the lines, use the 4” saw for small detail and larger saw for long straight lines. There are companies that manufacture saws just for this purpose that allow you to cut straight lines much quicker.

Stencil Designs: Custom designs can be created by using stencils and sand blasting. This technique is a little bit more advanced but the results are outstanding. Please consult your supplier about the proper method of application and necessary training.

You will need assorted brushes and sprayers to apply Acid Stain, 1 Qt. spray bottles and 1 to 2 gallon pump sprayers will do fine, use equipment with no metal parts. Shake container before use and fill sprayers. Apply in a non uniform way making sure you wet the entire area and follow up immediately with a brush, and “work” the stain into the concrete in a circular motion to add to the random effect., varying degrees of fizzing will occur in different areas and color may not show right away, remember this is a chemical reaction and some colors react slower than others. Apply uniformly throughout entire area. Let stain dry and then apply a second coat the same way.

After Acid Stain has dried the surface must be scrubbed and neutralized. Using a medium stiffness brush, apply a mixture of water and baking soda over surface, gently brush entire area and the rinse thoroughly with clean water. Protect adjacent area from run off and allow to dry completely before sealing.

After floor is completely dry apply two coats of clear non yellowing sealer and or wax. Consult your supplier about types of sealer to use for interior or exterior applications and for instructions on how to and when to apply wax.

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